County Drain Commissioner Jeff Wright said today, Jan. 11, that the Army Corps of Engineers has issued the final required permit and said a construction contract could be signed for the work by the end of February.

Wright called the federal agency's issuance "a monumental step forward for our community" in a news release, and said it "is imperative that we move forward with the water line in order to avoid the double-digit increases we have been forced to accept from Detroit."

Once a contract to build the intake is signed, Wright said the county will have come "real close to the point of no return" by committing to spend up to $35 million on the first construction phase of the pipeline.

The drain commissioner said he plans to ask the county Water and Waste Advisory Board, which is made up of representatives of cities, villages and townships in the county, to set a bid date at its meeting next week.

The county Board of Commissioners has already agreed to back up to $35 million in borrowing for the 84-inch-diameter intake, which has been designed to stretch 1.5 miles under the floor of the lake.

Building the intake won't require that the county have a final decision from the city of Flint on its participation in the pipeline partnership that's been proposed through the Karegnondi Water Authority.

County officials have said they are prepared to build the pipeline alone to avoid additional water price increases from the city of Detroit, which has sold the vast majority of public water here since the 1960s.

In addition to the county and Flint, the city of Lapeer, and Lapeer and Sanilac counties have also discussed the KWA partnership.

The city of Flint, burdened by a financial emergency and required state approvals for all expenditures of $50,000 or more, has yet to commit to becoming a pipeline partner.